Verdict
A well priced pillow, the Amazon Basics Deluxe Down Alternative Pillow feels soft to the touch, and has a washable cover. It’s not the fastest to dissipate heat, and I found it a little too tall for my comfort.
Pros
- Good value
- Machine washable
- Good support
Cons
- A little slow to dissipate heat
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FillingThe synthetic polyester filling is designed to replicate the feeling of feather down.
Introduction
Continuing its line of low-cost, but generally decent products, is the Amazon Basics Deluxe Down Alternative Pillow.
This pillow is good value, and comfortable enough, but it’s a little on the firm side and doesn’t have the best heat reduction.
Design and Filling
- Synthetic filling
- Machine washable
The Amazon Basics Deluxe Down Alternative Pillow is a little basic, with a standard cotton cover that’s sewn over the synthetic interior.
While the pillow may not have a removable cover or a neater finish to it, it’s good to see that the entire pillow can be machine washed at 40°C, and can be put in the tumble dryer on the cool setting. That helps keep this pillow in the best condition. Otherwise, it’s worth plumping this pillow after sleeping on it to keep its shape.
Amazon has used a polyester filling in this pillow, which the company says is designed to give it the feel of feather down, only with no animals harmed. As a result of the synthetic filling, the pillow is hypoallergenic.
Comfort
- A little firm
- Takes a while to dissipate heat
Amazon says that the pillow is designed to feel like real down. I’m not sure that’s the case exactly, but the pillow does feel soft to the touch, with a spring to it.
Whereas feathers can be very forgiving, I found that the Amazon Basics Deluxe Down Alternative Pillow was quite a bit firmer and would only compress a little.
As a result, my head was held 13cm from the mattress, which is was just a little too tall for me, and I prefer a pillow that gives a little more. As a result, I found the more expensive Simba Hybrid Pillow a better fit overall, better replicating a down pillow.
To see how well the Amazon Basics Deluxe Down Alternative Pillow dealt with heat, I put my head on the pillow for 10 minutes, and then took a thermal image every minute after that. As you can see from the photos below, it took four minutes for the heat to completely go, which is slower than with the Silentnight Airmax Pillow.
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Should you buy it?
You want a well-priced washable pillow
This pillow is comfortable enough, well priced and can go in the washing machine to keep it clean.
You want something that gets rid of heat faster
There are better pillows for dissipating heat, which will be a better choice for those who struggle to sleep in hot weather.
Final Thoughts
The Amazon Basics Deluxe Down Alternative Pillow is cheap, but I think it’s outclassed by the competition.
The Silentnight Airmax Pillow is better at removing heat, while the Simba Hybrid Pillow more accurately replicates that feather down feeling.
How we test
We test every pillow we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.
Find out more about how we test in our ethics policy.
Used as our main pillow for the review period
We use a thermal camera to see how quickly the pillow can dissipate heat for a comfortable night’s sleep.
We measure how far off the mattress our head is kept, to check how supportive the pillow is
We measure how far off the mattress our head is kept, to check how supportive the pillow is
FAQs
Yes, the entire pillow can be washed at 40°C and then tumble dried on cool.
